Gallery: 1950 Aston Martin DB2

David Brown’s vision for a new Aston Martin truly came to life at the 1949 24 Hours of Le Mans with the debut of the DB2. It was far sportier in appearance than the first car of the Brown era, and more importantly, it featured W.O. Bentley’s 2.6-litre, twin-cam engine, which Aston had acquired with Brown’s purchase of Lagonda.

Following the construction of three race cars and a development car, 46 customer cars were made with the famous washboard side-vents and grille, which is a now-prized fascia that would change with succeeding versions of the model. The DB2 was more of a quintessential sports car than the DB touring saloons that followed, and it was arguably the company’s purest effort at a dual-purpose sports racer, in the true spirit of the legendary 1950s racing circuit.

If you like what you see here and have the means to act upon it, you’re in luck – this particular Aston, the 13th DB2 made, will be up for sale at RM Auctions’ upcoming event in Paris on February 5th. You can get all the details on this Greenwich Concours d’Elegance award winner over at the auction page.